Chris Caravella's Virtual Tour of Ustica

The Old Town

The old houses lie high above on the northern edge of town across from the Municipal Office. These are the original homes of the last permanent inhabitants of the early 1760's. They are easily distinguished by the exposed brick and mortar construction. The "bricks" are actually blocks of stone carved from the nearby mountains. If you can imagine, the streets are even narrower and are often mere foot paths. The whole area has a very distinctive charm and is quite set apart from the more modern structures nearer to the port.

A typical street in the old town. At Via Tre Mulini just off of Via Petriera across from the Municipal Office, there is an artsy cermaics shop called "Le Due Sicilia". They do really nice work but everything I wanted was a bit too large for easy transport back to the U.S. Usticesi use this shop for custom tiles when planning home construction or renovation. There are many hand painted tile samples to choose from.

Toward the northern edge of town across from the open plains of Tramontana. The homes have and understated elegance. The Mediterranean (Californian) climate supports all kinds of flowering plants. The Hibiscus and Bougainvillea grow to the size of trees here.

This is actually the original church. You can make out the double doors beneath the gabled roof. The church and the surrounding structures were part of a monastery that was here long before the last permanent inhabitants arrived in the 1760's. The buildings now are in disrepair but may be developed as a historic site in the future.

[Panorama] [Welcome] [Map] [Faraglioni] [Falconiera] [Culunnedda] [Baseball Field] [Santa Maria Tower] [The City] [Spalmatore] [The Grottos] [The Old Town] [The Cemetery] [The Back Dock] [Tramontana] [Pass of the Madonna] [Chapel of San Bartolicchio] [Geology of Ustica] [Plan a Trip]